By Keaton Rahman

The band Wallows, originally from Los Angeles, California, is composed of Dylan Minnette on guitar and vocals, Braeden Lemasters on guitar and vocals, and Cole Preston on drums and guitar. Though the band had technically been together since childhood, Wallows released their first single “Pleaser” in 2017. Also released in 2017 was 13 Reasons Why, a Netflix original series starring Minnette, which brought him more recognition. After releasing a few more singles, the band began to play live shows and would sell out venues in California, such as The Roxy Theatre. Their popularity grew as they released their first project, Spring EP, in 2018. About a year later, they released their first full album, Nothing Happens, with the song “Are You Bored Yet” featuring popular teen artist Clairo. “Are You Bored Yet” became their most popular song, gaining over 100 million streams and also became the first Wallows song I had the pleasure of listening to. 

Wallows. Photo credit: Jimmy Fontaine and Warner Bros. Music. 

Wallows, now one of my favorite bands of all time, was introduced to me last year by my best friend Eliza Stone (‘22). She put on their album on one of our car rides, and I was hooked. Pre-COVID, I was prepared to drive long hours to see Wallows, but unfortunately that did not happen. Since the pandemic hit, Wallows has done four livestream concerts in The Roxy Theatre, charging $15 per virtual ticket. The shows were wonderfully done and made me even more excited to see them in person. Their sound could be described in many different ways, and music critic Kirsty Thorp says describes their genre as “Colloquial, casual and feel-good indie-pop with a hearty bass and beat.” 

Their most recent project, their EP Remote, released on October 23, is made up of six songs: “Nobody Gets Me (Like You),” “Virtual Aerobics,” “Dig What You Dug,” “Coastlines,” “Talk Like That,” and “Wish Me Luck.” This is the first new music released by the band since their single “OK” came out in March, so this EP was highly anticipated by fans.

Wallows first released “Nobody Gets Me (Like You),” on September 9, over a month prior to the rest of the EP. This upbeat, extremely catchy song set the tone for the rest of the EP. With lyrics like, “I need a girl like you / Someone to pull me through” and “I know we just met tonight / But I think we’ll put up a good fight,” “Nobody” illustrates meeting a girl for the first time and immediately feeling a connection. Straying slightly from their previous indie rock sound, “Nobody” resembles their most recent single, “OK,” which was slightly disheartening for fans who loved their old sound. Lemasters took the lead on the vocals of this song, and with his somewhat raspy voice, led the song to sounding more like a pop side. 

“Virtual Aerobics” was the last song released prior to the actual release date of the EP. Another song involving a romantic interest, Minnette’s smooth vocals caused this song to have a softer feel than “Nobody.” Also different from their past music, “Virtual Aerobics” is very bedroom pop, more closely resembling, “Are You Bored Yet?” In “Virtual Aerobics,” Minnette sings, “I wanna’ dress in what makes you like me,” representing a crush and the attempt to start something new. 

The highlight of the EP for me is “Dig What You Dug,” with its memorable and optimistic lyrics. Lemasters sings my favorite line of the EP, “I love the way you say my name / Say it again.” Following with the theme of the rest of the EP, “Dig What You Dug” further elaborates on discovering feelings for a girl and wanting her to feel the same way. 

“Coastlines” is song about realizing a relationship is coming to an end and not wanting to accept it. Minette sings, “I don’t wanna think about it / When we’re on different coastlines / I don’t wanna think about it.” In contrast to the other songs on the EP about finding new love, “Coastlines” tells about avoiding the inevitable end of a relationship. Minnette sings about not wanting to let her go and hoping she still cares. These lyrics demonstrate a last-ditch effort to maintain a relationship that’s falling apart. The layering of sounds in the background and the meaningful lyrics make “Coastlines” stand out among the other five songs of the EP. 

“Talk Like That” is a short, but a sweet uptempo ballad following the pattern of the rest of the EP with its poppy vocals and lyrics about relationships. This song has lots of layering of instruments behind the lyrics, making it sometimes hard to hear what Minnette is actually singing, but it doesn’t take away from being able to enjoy the song. “Talk Like That” will be a hit at future Wallows concerts. 

The last song on the EP, “Wish Me Luck”  demonstrates through Minnette’s words, the fear of being vulnerable with their partner. With lines like, “I don’t wanna lose myself to all my insecurities / If I told you all of them, who would it hurt more, you or me?” he expresses the fear of opening up. The lyrics are sung in a choppy pattern and create a sound differing from the rest of the EP. Similar to the rest of the EP, “Wish Me Luck” also has a prominent layered instrumental sound behind the lyrics. 

Wallows strikes again with an EP that though doesn’t sound like their previous work but still manages to steal the hearts of fans everywhere. In 16 minutes, they reaffirmed their status as one of my favorite bands of all time. In a reddit Q&A, Wallows addressed how Remote doesn’t necessarily have their “old sound.” Minnette writes, “from day one though, we have never, ever wanted to ‘look back’ or make the same project twice, so i think Wallows will be forever evolving.”